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 Derplington wrote: Does Bernstein hate his daughter? She is almost never brought up, while his son is referenced multiple times an episode. I almost started doubting my memory that he actually had a daughter. He mentioned a couple years ago she had diabetes that had to be monitored. Always in my prayers for much good health. Here's a Tribune article from Sep 28, 2005 Amputation is a funny subject. In fact, it is a laugh riot.
At least that's the approach on Dan Bernstein's and Terry Boers' afternoon show on WSCR-AM 670.
Ron Santo, a double amputee, is the source of all kinds of material for Bernstein and Boers. They have been poking fun at his condition for years.
The duo did it again Tuesday. Bernstein talked about how Santo "stumps around."
Later, Bernstein read an e-mail about Santo that had the punch line, "signed Dave Dravecky." You remember the former San Francisco Giants pitcher who had his left arm amputated because of cancer.
Funny stuff, huh?
The jokes are part of the anything-goes format in sports talk radio these days. It isn't enough to talk about Kyle Orton's five interceptions. To get listeners into the tent, some personalities evidently believe they have to be so irreverent that good taste is an afterthought.
As a longtime liberal listener (the three L's), I'm willing to go a reasonable distance before my buttons get pushed. But the remarks about Santo go beyond the line on so many levels.
Two straight winters I went to Santo's home in Arizona after he had undergone surgery to remove his legs below the knees. I saw how he struggled to cope with a new life, learning how to walk first without one leg and then without both of them.
All Santo talked about was his desire to retain enough mobility to play with his grandson Sam and to ride his horse. For a man who played baseball at the highest level, the loss of his legs was a jarring experience.
Yet Santo pushed on. Remarkably, he continues to call Cubs games at home and on the road. That's no small feat given his condition. Anybody who saw his son Jeff's documentary, "This Old Cub," had to feel compassion watching the extensive routine Santo has to endure just to start his day.
Obviously, Bernstein and Boers didn't see the film.
Then there's the matter of why Santo lost his legs--complications from diabetes. It is an insidious disease that wreaks havoc on the human body. If you're a diabetic, one of your main fears is that you could lose a leg. It can start with a simple sore on your foot that doesn't heal, as was the case with Santo.
By making fun of Santo and his amputations, Bernstein and Boers also are minimizing the seriousness of diabetes. Their jokes are incredibly offensive to anyone who suffers from the disease, or knows somebody who does. And that's virtually everyone because it is the rare family that hasn't been touched by diabetes.
When contacted Wednesday, Bernstein's first reaction was, "We've been telling those jokes for years."
Sure, that validates everything.
Bernstein went on to explain how he and Boers poke fun at all sorts of subjects, including themselves.
Does that include making jokes about a person who lost his legs to an insidious disease? Isn't that just a bit tasteless? Is diabetes a laughing matter?
Bernstein responded to those points essentially by saying, "You're entitled to your opinion."
Bernstein concluded, "Anyone who is engaged in satirical humor must be prepared for people to disagree with your humor."
It really is a shame Bernstein believes he has to resort to that kind of humor.
He is easily the smartest guy in local sports talk radio. His insights into the Eddy Curry situation, for example, go way beyond what you normally hear on WSCR or WMVP-AM 1000. Yet people will remember him more for his tasteless cracks about Santo.
Boers chose not to comment publicly. There is some personal history between him and Santo. Boers has said on the air that at Mike Murphy's wedding a few years back, Santo basically told him he was an idiot.
Boers obviously has hard feelings toward Santo. If he wants to lampoon him for the way he calls a game, or the way he played the game, that's fair.
But joking about a person's physical infirmity is way out of bounds. It goes beyond just that individual. In this case, it hits at the core of everyone who has had to deal with diabetes.
Sunday, Santo will host the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation's annual walk. Through Santo's efforts, the foundation has raised millions of dollars. His situation has increased awareness in the ongoing effort to find a cure for the disease.
So if Bernstein and Boers continue to feel the need to make light of Santo's amputations, maybe they also could put in a plug for people to support Sunday's walk and future diabetes research. At least some good would come out of their infantile humor.
That's assuming you still are listening. As Bernstein says, everyone is entitled to his or her opinion.
If you're offended by what they say about Santo, let them know. Or better yet, don't listen.
Then Santo and other diabetics would get the last laugh.
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